Cody's Blog

With a fire in his eyes and a humongous smile on his face, the lovable Boston Red Sock designated hitter David Ortiz sauntered to the plate in the final round of the 2010 Home Run Derby. He pulled up just short of the batter’s box, and then proceeded to perform the most famous pre at-bat ritual in baseball today. With the bat between his arms, Big Papi spat in his batting gloves, clapped twice, un-strapped and then strapped each of his batting gloves, donned a smile and then proceeded to tie the record for most home runs in the final round of a Derby with 11 bombs, all soaring over right field fence. Those 11 bombs gave him the Derby win, as he belted 32 total homers, beating former Red Sock prospect Hanley Ramirez by six homers to take home the trophy. Ortiz then promptly dedicated his effort to fellow Dominican and long time friend Jose Lima, a former All-Star major league pitcher who passed away earlier this year at the age of 37. Left for dead the past two years because of his horrendous performances in the first couple months of the season, Ortiz showed everyone that he still has some life in the bat, as is seen by his performance this year. After hitting .143 with a homer and four RBI in the first month, Ortiz has raised his batting average 120 points to .263, and has also belted 17 homers and knocked in 53 since the first month of the season. With his notable batting ritual, big smile, and unique follow through, David Ortiz is primed for a big second half as the Red Sox will look to catch the Yankees and earn a playoff berth. (Photo Courtesy of Reuters/ Danny Woloshok.)